No. 1477 last operated in 2007 in Colorado, shown here on the Rio Grande Scenic near Alamosa.
Jim Wrinn
SUNOL, Calif. – The Pacific Locomotive Association has purchased Southern Pacific 2-6-0 No. 1744, which will be rebuilt for operation on the Niles Canyon Railway.
The 1910 Baldwin-built Mogul-type locomotive operated for many years out of Oakland on the SP Western Division and in California’s Central Valley where the type were fondly called “Valley Mallets” by their crews. The locomotive was made famous in later years by operating on several of the last steam excursions on the SP. After many years of operating around the U.S., No. 1744 is returning home to once again operate through Niles Canyon on the last leg of the Transcontinental Railroad.
After retirement in 1958, the locomotive operated at the Heber Valley Railroad in Utah, moved to Texas and was restored for a brief period of operation in New Orleans. Iowa Pacific bought the locomotive and ran it on the San Luis & Rio Grande over Colorado’s La Veta Pass in tourist service during 2007 until it was sidelined with boiler issues. The locomotive was disassembled, boiler work was started, and then work stopped as funding ran short. The locomotive has sat disassembled since 2008 with the boiler moving from Alabama to Texas and then back to Colorado during this time.
The Pacific Locomotive Association is currently in the process of gathering the pieces together in Colorado for shipment. The boiler will be sent to a contract shop for repairs while the rest of the locomotive will be shipped to Niles Canyon.
For more information, or to donate, to go to plasteam.ncry.org.
No. 1744 rounds a bend at La Veta, Colo., on the Rio Grande Scenic in 2007.
Jim Wrinn
